Broncos Hire Ex-Saints Interim HC Darren Rizzi as STC: Report

Sean Payton finally got his guy in Darren Rizzi.

Nick Kendell | Feb 14, 2025

Dec 23, 2024; Green Bay, Wisconsin, USA; New Orleans Saints head coach Darren Rizzi looks on during the first quarter against the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field. / Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images

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The Denver Broncos are finally taking action on former New Orleans Saints interim head coach and long-time special teams coordinator Darren Rizzi, according to NFL Network's Tom Pelissero.

"Got Rizz: The Broncos are hiring Darren Rizzi as their special teams coordinator, per source," Pelissero posted on X on Friday. "The Saints rallied behind Rizzi, 54, as interim coach and he was a finalist for the full-time job. But New Orleans hired Kellen Moore and now Rizzi reunites with Sean Payton in Denver."

Got Rizz: The #Broncos are hiring Darren Rizzi as their special teams coordinator, per source.

The #Saints rallied behind Rizzi, 54, as interim coach and he was a finalist for the full-time job. But New Orleans hired Kellen Moore and now Rizzi reunites with Sean Payton in…
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) February 14, 2025

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Rizzi joining the Broncos coaching staff felt all but inevitable after the Saints hired former Philadelphia Eagles offensive coordinator Kellen Moore to be the new head coach. Perhaps one of the more underrated aspects of the Broncos since the Payton hire has been the massive improvement of the team’s special teams play.

However, with assistant head coach and long-time renowned third-phase coach Mike Westhoff resigning from the Broncos midseason, the team later decided to move on from Westhoff’s choice of special teams coordinator Ben Kotwica. While Westhoff was undoubtedly a Payton guy, Kotwice had more direct ties to Westhoff than the Broncos head coach.

The Broncos also lost former assistant special teams coach Chris Banjo this offseason to the New York Jets, who joined Aaron Glenn’s staff in East Rutherford. With all the turnover on the Broncos coaching staff, adding Rizzi should help maintain upper-echelon special teams play going forward in the Mile High City.

Rizzi was first hired under Payton in 2019 to be the special teams coordinator for the Saints. Rizzi was thought highly enough by former Saints head coach Dennis Allen that he was retained after Payton departed and was promoted to assistant head coach.

There were some concerns that if Rizzi didn’t retain the head coaching spot in New Orleans he might follow Dennis Allen to the Chicago Bears, as Allen was hired to be the team's new defensive coordinator. However, given the deep pockets of the Broncos ownership group compared to every other team in the NFL, if Payton identifies a coach he wants, it will be hard for any other organization to outbid Denver.

The Broncos still have a number of coaching vacancies to fill over the offseason as the team lost ample positional coaches since the conclusion of the 2024 season. But with Rizzi in the fold, despite the turnover in the staff, there is also familiarity with how Payton wants things done.

Other than seeing who the Broncos bring in for the open positional coach vacancies, the eyes of Broncos Country should now turn to quarterbacks coach Davis Webb, who is purportedly a possible candidate to head to New Orleans himself for a promotion to become the Saints offensive coordinator under Moore.

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